Synopsis

This picaresque masterpiece has won wide acclaim in Japan, Asia, and the United States for its compelling realism, which delivers both thrills and food for thought. The thief of the title, who is also the narrator, is a professional pickpocket working in Tokyo. He dresses in expensive suits and coats so as not to stand out or draw suspicion (though his feet are clad in sneakers, in case he needs to run), and he targets only the well-heeled, deftly slipping their wallets from their pockets. A moral nihilist, he is without family, girlfriend, or any other personal connections, and he has no interests apart from his trade. His long fingers are well-suited to the job, the index and middle fingers being nearly the same length, and he is ambidextrous. Some time ago, the thief and his partner Ishikawa were effectively forced to participate in a heist they didn't really want to be part of. It was supposed to be easy: they and four other men would break into the home of a wealthy old man to steal his money and some papers; the thief's assignment was to tie up the man's live-in girlfriend, for which he was promised a five million yen cut. The break-in appeared to go off without a hitch, but then the news reported not only that the man they'd robbed was a prominent politician but that he had been killed. Also disturbing was the fact that Ishikawa went missing immediately afterwards. The thief realized he'd been dragged into some kind of mysterious political intrigue orchestrated by break-in mastermind Kizaki.

After skipping town to wait for things to blow over, the thief has recently made a quiet return. Then, as if he's been keeping tabs on him all along, Kizaki reappears to act as the master of his fate, telling him he must complete three missions. If he fails, he will be killed; if he flees, a woman he has befriended will be killed, along with her child. He has no escape . . .

About the Author

Fuminori Nakamura(1977–) hails from Aichi Prefecture in central Japan. After college he supported himself with part-time jobs while setting his sights on becoming a writer. He cites Dostoevsky, Camus, and Kafka as his major influences. His literary debut came in 2002, when he won the Shincho Prize for New Writers for the novella Jū (tr. The Gun, 2016); the work was also short-listed for the Akutagawa Prize. He garnered the Akutagawa in 2005 on his third nomination, for Tsuchi no naka no kodomo (Child in the Ground). In 2010 he received the Kenzaburō Ōe Prize for Suri (tr. The Thief, 2012); Ōe lauded the work, saying “In an era when deep layers of poverty, newly revealed, are raising great social concern, this author understands that fresh perspectives can and must be brought to bear.” With his frequent focus on characters who were born or driven into poverty, Nakamura casts a sharp light on often overlooked aspects of contemporary Japan. The English edition of The Thief won acclaim in 2013 when it became a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and was selected as one of the year’s ten best novels by the Wall Street Journal. An English edition of the author’s 2010 novel Aku to kamen no rūru (tr. Evil and the Mask) also appeared in 2013. In 2014 Nakamura was awarded the David L. Goodis Award for his contribution to noir fiction, becoming the first Japanese author to be so honored.www.nakamurafuminori.jpBooks by this author